Things To Do

Introduction

This guide is a slightly edited version of
pages we created for out-of-town guests to our
wedding on August 5, 2006. Thus, some of the information is dated.

There are literally a million things you could do in Chicago,
particularly in the summertime when the city is at its most vibrant.
There are innumerable festivals, many of them free, during the summer.
We're not going list all the possible options, but rather will provide
a few day-long itineraries we think are fun. We don't like being
rushed, so each itinerary is not too full. If they're too slow-paced
for you, you might want to combine two itineraries together.

Itinerary 1: Museum Day

While Chicago isn't New York or Washington D.C. when it comes to museums,
it has a host of great museums all located within (a long) walking
distance. All museums listed below are in Downtown.

Museum Campus, located just North of Soldier Field,
consists of the
Shedd Aquarium
(Address: 1200 S. Lake Shore Dr., Chicago; Tel: 312-939-2438),
Adler Planetarium
(Address: 1300 S. Lake Shore Dr., Chicago; Tel: 312-922-STAR),
and the
Field Museum
(Address: 1400 S. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago; Tel: 312-922-9410).
While the aquarium and planetarium are quite nice, the
real jewel of the three is the Field, which covers many
aspects of natural history. In the permanent collection,
the Grainger Hall of Gems will dazzle (literally!)
and the skeleton of "Sue," the museum's pet T. Rex, will awe.
A temporary exhibition
"Tutankhamun
and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs"
is open until 2007. (Note special exhibitions usually cost extra.)
The King Tut
exhibit is often sold out, so we recommend you pre-purchase tickets to it
online.
Summer hours: 8-5 daily.

The Art Institute of Chicago
(Address: 111 S. Michigan Ave. [at Adams], Chicago;
Tel: 312-443-3600;
map),
has world-class collections ranging
from Ancient Chinese to modern art.
Their Impressionist collection is quite nice
(Georges Seurat's pointillist work "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte" is
here). The miniature rooms are usually a hit, even with kids. Men
and boys will like the armory, showing swords and coats of armor.
You can easily spend 4 hours at the Art Institute, so you should
budget half a day there.
The cafeteria in the basement is quite good
and reasonably affordable (a friend of ours at church
is a pastry chef at the Art Insitute restaurant).
Summer hours (through Labor Day):
M-W 10:30-5:00,
Th 10:30-9:00,
F 10:30-9:00,
Sa 10:00-5:00,
Su 10:00-5:00.

Though you can walk from Museum Campus to the Art Institute, the walk's
a little long, so you may find bus or taxi to be easier.
For dinner, there's nothing really nearby Museum Campus, so
you might as well take a taxi or drive to one of the restaurants
listed in our dining guide.
If you end the day by the Art Institute, you might want to have
dinner at the
Park Grill
at Millennium Park
(Address: 11 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-521-7275). It's
a bit on the classy-side, with quality food and service.

Itinerary 2: Shopping Day

Even for someone who's not into shopping,
the Magnificent Mile
still is fun (which says something about the district).
We recommend starting from the northern end of the Mile
and working your way down. Take the
CTA Red Line
and hop off at the Chicago station (Chicago Ave. and State St.).
Head east and you will find the Magnificent Mile, also called
N. Michigan Ave.
(map of Mag Mile).

At the northern end of the Magnificent Mile you will find designer stores
such as Louis Vuitton, Bennetton, Bulgari, and Gucci. For the men who would
rather sightsee, there's the John Hancock Center where tourists can ride
up to the
observatory deck
near the top of the building
(Address: 875 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-751-3681),
or the
Signature Room restaurant
(Address: 875 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-787-9596)
at the 95th floor.
Another choice
for a nice lunch is
The Cheesecake Factory
at the foot of John Hancock Center
(Address: 875 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-337-1101).

After scoping out the city from up high, hit the
Water Tower Place
(Address: 835 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-440-3580),
an 8 floor atrium mall with 100 stores.
There are small food stalls, a food court, and a
California Pizza Kitchen, but besides that the
dining options are slim; don't save up for a sit-down meal here. The coolest
part of the mall is the fountain at the main entrance of the mall: It lines
the escalator leading into the mall and shoots "pebbles" of water to a
rhythmic beat.

When you're finished at Water Tower Place, walk west across Michigan Ave.
and grab an ice cream at the
Ghiradelli
Soda Fountain and Chocolate store
(Address: 830 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-337-9330).
In summer it's really busy and you'll have to fight
for a table or sit outside by the by the old historic Chicago Water Tower
that survived the Great Fire. Take pictures and enjoy a couple street
artists who are around that area. Then, begin heading south toward the
parade of designer and brand name stores.

The
Ralph Lauren
(Address: 750 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-280-1655)
4-story store, the world's largest Polo store,
is quite a place to gaze at; it feels
like a small mansion as you stroll through it. As you head south you'll
pass by an
Apple Store
(Address: 679 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-981-4104)
and a Niketown.
Other famous chain stores that are in the vicinity include
Banana Republic, Pottery Barn, Tiffany & Co. And we can't
forget about
Ann Taylor
(Address: 600 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-587-8301)!

Snack at
Garrett Popcorn Shops
(Address: 670 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-280-0162)
where you will probably find a long line of
people waiting to get a bite of Garret's popcorn. Their
cheese popcorn is awesome!

End at the
Westfield North Bridge Mall
(Address: 520 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-327 2300)
where you will find places to sit and rest, in addition
to Nordstrom's, Ann Taylor Loft, and Oilily.
One place we haven't visited at this mall, but would love to, is
Ethel's Chocolate Lounge
(Address: 520 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-464-9330). It
sounds like a nice place to just sit and recover after a long day's
shopping.
Make sure to visit the
LEGO store
and see
what creative sculptures they've built with Lego blocks!

There are a number of good restaurants on the Mag Mile.
If it was a really long day of shopping, treat yourself at the
Capital Grill
(Address: 633 N. St. Clair, Chicago; Tel: 312-337-9400)
where you will find one of the best places to have steak.
They have an unforgettable Caesar salad.
The Capital Grill isn't cheap, so if you'd like something a little
more moderately priced, try out the
Grand
Lux Cafe
(Address: 600 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-276-2500), which
is very much like a Cheesecake Factory in style and menu (in fact
they're owned by the same company).
Or if you'd like to eat somewhere away from the Mag Mile,
see our dining guide for more options.

If you and your party are still up for more sightseeing, we recommend
heading east on Illinois St. towards the Lake and visiting
Navy Pier
(Address: 600 E. Grand Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-595-PIER)
This mini-amusement park is a great place to end your
day where you can ride on top of a large ferris wheel to view Chicago's
skyline at night. Kids will enjoy the carousel and mini-golf course.
Many evenings in the summer, Navy Pier
sponsors fireworks shows you can see from the Pier and surrounding areas.
You can also buy tickets to sit on a small cruise ship to cruise around Lake
Michigan and view Chicago from there!

Itinerary 3: Day of Buildings and Parks

In this itinerary we spend the day exploring Chicago's architectural
heritage and the cultural events available at the main Downtown
parks. This entire itinerary takes place in the Loop.

Chicago is known for its architecture, and justly so.
Even though New York is larger and more crazily vibrant,
for layout and selection of buildings and structures,
Chicago beats everyone hands-down. There is a tremendous diversity of
architectural styles, but the buildings styles augment one another
rather than seeming random and disconnected as in New York.
And unlike other cities, you can see the Downtown skyline in one
fell swoop, with
breathtaking results.

Start the day with an architecture tour along the Chicago River.
The Chicago Architecture Foundation's 90 minute
Architecture River Cruise
is a great time.
The guides are erudite and the scenery spectacular. The price
may seem high ($25-27) but it's worth it.
The dock is located at the southeast corner of Wacker Dr. and
the Michigan Ave. Bridge. You have to take an exterior stairway from
the bridge down to the river bank. You can buy advance tickets from
Ticketmaster at 312-902-1500 (there's an extra fee).
For group reservations call 312-922-3432x226.

After you're done with the architecture tour, spend time strolling
through the city's world-class urban parks.
The most amazing is the lakefront of Lake Michigan. Particularly
for those who've been to Malibu, CA,
where it seems like every beachfront
homeowner has put up fencing to restrict public access to as close to
zero as legally possible, it's hard to believe that Chicago
has set aside nearly the entire lakefront - miles and miles of
lakefront - as a public park and beach. There are no
restricted privately-owned buildings on the eastern side of
Lake Shore Dr., except for a single high-rise near Navy Pier.
You can access the lakefront from many places along Lake Shore Dr.;
just walk towards the lake.
The CTA map of Downtown
gives a good idea of how to get to the Lake. Walk up and down the lakefront
and relax!

If you walk south along the lakefront from the Chicago River
(where the architecture tour was), you'll hit the
two main central Downtown parks,
Grant Park
(Address: 331 E. Randolph St., Chicago; Tel: 312-742-7648) and
the adjoining
Millennium Park
(Address: E/W between Columbus Dr. and Michigan Ave. and
N/S between Randolph St. and Monroe St., Chicago; Tel: 312-742-1168).

These two parks anchor and animate the city.
Giant Buckingham Fountain, seen in the opening sequence of
Married With Children, is in Grant Park.
Millennium Park boasts several unique and fascinating sculptures,
including two city-favorites: Cloud Gate (a.k.a. "The Bean")
and The Crown Fountain (a.k.a. "The Mouths that Shoot Water").
Both parks are also the home of numerous cultural events during
the summer, many of which are free to the public. These include:

For dinner, the
Park Grill
restaurant is right at Millennium Park
(Address: 11 N. Michigan Ave., Chicago; Tel: 312-521-7275). It's
a bit on the classy-side, with quality food and service.
Besides Park Grill, there aren't many places we like that are
near Millennium and Grant Parks.
See our dining guide for other options.

Disclaimer:
Although we believe the information on this page was accurate
when we did our research (mostly in Spring 2006), we do not
guarantee its accuracy. And changes occur
all the time. Please double-check the information as needed.